Whiskey Lullabye
by Bunny1
Summary: Sam Beckett leaps into Steven Hyde after the episode 'Ice Shack' to save Jackie and Hyde from ruining their lives- and ending them too soon... COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

When Sam leaped this time, he landed in a car, driving on an icy road. He flinched, the leap causing his new temporary body to move, hitting an icy skid on the road. He pulled over to the side, finally, safe, and tried to collect himself. A look around told him that he was in a mint-condition El Camino- that smelled like weed. The beads on the rearview mirror and the denim jacket he could see on his arms told him easily what decade he was in. A quick glance in the mirror showed a good looking guy of about 17 or 18, frizzy curls and sunshades.

"Definitely the seventies..." Sam said with a sigh. "Just wish I knew where this guy had been headed..."

Suddenly, his best- and only, really- friend, Al, popped in beside him in the form of a hologram.

"Hi, Sammy." he said, puffing on his ever-present cigar. "Man... this type of set up takes me back..." he said with a chuckle.

"Reminisce later, willya?" Sam groused. "Tell me who I am and why I'm here?"

"Right, right..." Al said, placing the cigar in his teeth and punching buttons on an odd little remote control.

He smacked at it until satisfied.

"Okay, you're in a kid named Steven Hyde- known mostly as Hyde to his circle of friends- and you're going to pick up your idiot friends at an ice-fishing shack, because, and I'm quoting the smartass in the waiting room, 'Kettle Head knocked his van in the ice'."

Sam rolled his eyes. "Right... Okay, you can point me in a direction, then."

Al nodded. "Yeah, sure. Get back on the road... that way."

Sam nodded, pulling extra carefully onto the icy road. "So, why am I here, Al?"

"To save Steven Hyde and Jackie Burkhardt from becoming Romeo and Juliet."

Sam raised an eyebrow. "Just looking at this kid, he hardly looks like a Romeo type..." Sam scoffed.

"Oh, well, yeah, that's the problem, Sammy," Al said. When his friend gave him a look of tried patience, Al continued. "See, about three weeks ago, this Jackie girl, who has been throwing herself at him, went on a date with him and jilted him."

"Okay..."

"Well, see, the only reason she did that is because_she'd_been rejected so many times by him, that she wanted to be the one in control. Have the power for once. Cold feet, you know."

Sam nodded. "It makes sense."

"Yeah, to a woman it would, not to me..." Al muttered. "Ahem, anyway, they end up getting back together about a year and a half from now."

Sam frowned. "Then, why is it_now_I'm here?"

"Because, see, by that time they're both so battered and damaged, they can never really admit their true feelings to each-other before it's too late, Sam." Al sighed. "They think they're just fooling around, then they admit they're in love, but won't go for the commitment... abandonment issues up the wazoo, just opposite ends of the spectrum, on_both_sides."

Sam nodded. Nothing he hadn't seen before...

"See, in 1978, they break up- for good, because, he tells her he won't marry her. Ever."

"But, if he loves her, why_not_?"

"Fear, Sammy. Trust me, I've been there. You're lookin' at a man with five ex-wives."

Sam nodded again, trying to concentrate on the road.

"So... what happens to them, then?"

"Well..." Al punched a few buttons, "she decides to move in with and have a love affair his best friend, New Year's Eve 1980. But, she's not with any other guys at all before that."

"Still pining for him?"

"Yeah, it'd be my guess. But, see, the next day, New Year's Day... they find him, dead in his bedroom at his foster parents' house."

Sam swallowed.

"He was 19. Jackie starts self-medicating... the very next New Year's Day, 1981, they find her dead in her apartment, a picture of the two of them together clutched so tight in her hand, they can't get it out."


	2. Chapter 2

Sam walked into the house to see a little wet damsel, shivering in front of a stove, sneezing. He frowned.

"Hey, what happened to you?" he asked, kneeling in front of her.

"St-stupid Micheal... he yelled at me an' said... it w-was m-my f-fault about his stupid van! And then he bumped me into the ice hole!"

Sam stood up, looking around for this Micheal character.

"Hey!" Kelso shrieked indignantly. "It was an _accident _I told you!"

"Kelso! You were pissed because she didn't want to get back together with you!" Donna snapped.

"That doesn't mean it was on purpose!" he pouted.

Sam took his denim jacket off and put it around the still shivering brunette, despite the fact that he now was in short sleeves.

"Everyone just shut up and get in the car!" he snapped, aggravated.

Al shook his head. "Nozzle." he muttered, glowering at Kelso. "Self-absorbed Nozzle..."

Sam put an arm around Jackie, leading her to the car, the others following in tow. Kelso started to get in the front seat, but Sam glared at him. "Guys who push girls into the ice do not get to ride shotgun." he said flatly.

Kelso pouted like a little kid, his shoe scuffing the snow as Fez walked past him and pleasedly sat on Jackie's other side, so that she was in the middle between them. Kelso went to get into the back with Eric and Donna, but Sam cleared his throat, clearly starting to enjoy this.

"I didn't say you could get in the _back_seat, either." he smirked.

Al raised an eyebrow, clearly enjoying this. "You tell 'im, Sammy."

"But... where am I supposed to sit?" he asked in a small voice.

"The flatbed is empty." Donna smirked at him.

"It's 30 degrees!"

"Should've thought of that before you tried to murder me, _Micheal_!" Jackie huffed. "Get back there!"

"Man!" Kelso huffed, kicking at the snow as he stompingly made his way to the flatbed.

* * *

Later that night, Sam came downstairs from taking a shower to see Eric on the couch, watching something on TV.

"Hey, 'Get Smart'." he smiled. "Love this show..."

Eric shrugged. "Well, yeah, it's only brilliant," he nodded. "Anyway, what's with you and Jackie man?"

"Me and Jackie?"

"Dude. You were all... boyfriendy."

"Was I?"

Eric looked at him in an almost accusatory way. "Yes! But," he said, calming down, "you kind of have been for about six months. You keep doing this... weird stuff, like protecting her."

Sam quirked his mouth, amused. "That's not weird. She's my friend, I like her."

Eric's jaw dropped open. "Since _when_?"

"Dude, am I _that_ broken? For a while, okay?"

Eric scratched the back of his head. "Huh... weird. Well, okay, I guess..."

"Thanks for your permission." Sam smirked sarcastically.

He had by now figured out that Eric was somewhat like Hyde's little brother.

"Look, dude, I just... be careful. She dated Kelso a while, and I don't want the group to split. Plus... I don't get it."

"Are you kidding? She's way prettier than Donna."

"You take that back!"

Sam held up his hands, chuckling. "Look... I'm gonna ask her out."

"Why?"

"Because, maybe she's special. Maybe she's who I'm supposed to be with."

Eric looked at him like he had lobsters growing out of his ears.

"Okay, you have got to quit hitting the circle without me..."


	3. Chapter 3

The next morning, Sam got dressed, putting on some Old Spice he'd found in the bathroom, running a brush through his unruly hair as he looked in the mirror. He started when he saw more the one reflection staring back at him.

"Al..."

Al grinned at him.

"Hey, Sammy," he said. "Ya know, I don't think this kid would go through this much trouble..."

"Isn't that kind of the _point_, Al?"

Al nodded. "Right, right..."

Sam looked at him. "You okay? You look absolutely... goofy. Oh, no... you're dating another one of the interns, aren't you?" Sam groaned.

"No!" Al huffed, indignant. "I will have you know this 'goofy look' as you call it, is because this morning my son called me-"

"You have a son?" Sam interrupted, surprised.

"Oh, yeah, the swiss cheese brain," Al muttered. "Yes, yes, one kid only. Twenty-three." he reminded Sam. "I think he was with my third- no, fourth wife. The third was batshit crazy, so probably not her..."

Sam made a "continue to the point" motion with his hand.

"Oh! Yes, yes, anyway, he calls me this morning, and his wife's pregnant with twins." Al grinned.

Sam smiled. "That's great, Al!" he congratulated.

"Yeah, sweet, good little Catholic girl he married..." Al nodded. "She makes me come to dinner twice a week since they got married six months ago... Ahem, anyway, the guy in the waiting room is pissy and not much help."

Sam smirked. "He's also a pothead."

"Yah, well... just remember what you need to _do_, kiddo- aka, that hot little brunette number... oooh, she reminds me of my first wife Bethie..." he said reminiscently.

"_Al_."

"Ahem, right, right... go to it, Sammy."

Sam smiled, shaking his head as Al walked into the imaging chamber. "Thanks... grandpa." he said as a parting shot before the door closed.

And, standing in the open bathroom door was Laurie, looking at him like he was nuts. "You've been smoking too much." she said, rolling her eyes. "When you start talking to dead relatives who aren't there, it's time to tone it down a bit- and that's coming from _me_."

"Thanks for your concern." Sam said, unable to keep the hint of sarcasm out of his voice.

Laurie looked shocked. "That wasn't concern- no, go batshit, I don't care. More pancakes for me in the morning." she shrugged. "Now get out- I have to do my hair." she said, giving him a rough shove into the hallway, slamming the door behind him...


	4. Chapter 4

After Sam thought a while, he realized he remembered at one time Al saying he _didn't_ have kids- that perhaps one of the two times Sam had been in Al's past he really changed something. Something Al didn't even _realize_ was a change... He smiled. Al deserved kids, grandkids. He was pleased to have been able to help give him that- fortunately not physically, he smirked caustically to himself...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Meanwhile, Al walked into the Waiting Room to see Hyde pacing, smoking a cigarette in Sam's body.

"You know, I don't know when Dr. Beckett is going to get back to his body, but he really won't like you smoking in it," Al smirked.

"You're smokin'." Hyde shrugged. "And, you can't tell me you wouldn't be if you'd been abducted by some crazy government secret society, man."

"So, you realize we're government?" Al asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, you've hypnotized me and probably given me some bad hallucinogenic drugs to make me think I've been abducted by aliens, but that's just what you governmental types _do_, man. I see your uniform..."

"Yes, Navy Admiral." Al nodded.

"Pfft, whatever, man. I know my rights- which are probably none by this point..."

Al looked thoughtfully at this kid; he'd barely remember this, think it was all a bad, fuzzy nightmare anyway...

"This is to do with a Miss Jacqueline Beulah Burkhardt-"

"Jackie?" Hyde asked sharply. "What about her?"

"Strike a nerve there, partner?"

"Uh, no..." Hyde fidgeted.

"Right..."

"Look, kid, sit down. Dr. Beeks!" he called out.

An attractive African American woman walked in, and Hyde gave her a flirtatious smile.

"That's enough of that now, at this point you're young enough to be my son- and in real time you _would_ be old enough to be my father."

Hyde shook his head. "I can't deal with that much crazy, lady, no matter_ how_ hot you are." he said flatly.

"Ah, Dr. Beeks, please get our young guest here some sodium pentathol." Al said quietly.

She frowned. "Are you certain that's the best course of action?"

"I do not think that a lie detector would work on him, and he's not gonna really talk to us otherwise. He's two steps away from a foil helmet to keep 'the man' from reading his thoughts." Al whispered. "Can you administer it in a way that is not a shot?"

"No..."

"Then, we'll have to take our chances..." Al said, and sat back in his chair, looking at Hyde...


	5. Chapter 5

Al had Beeks give Hyde the highest dose she deemed safe, because he figured the kid had a "tolerance", and sat in the chair waiting for it to kick in. After about five minutes or so, Hyde was sitting, looking half asleep, half drunk, in his chair.

"Okay, I am going to ask you some important questions."

"Bastards..." Hyde muttered.

Al smirked; he actually liked this kid, and hadn't wanted to go this route- Sam would not have approved- but he wanted to save the kid's _life_, and he wouldn't remember it anyhow...

"Son, I want to ask you some questions, about your friend Jackie-"

"You stay _away_ from her!" he slurred, but with passion in his bowed up threateningly. "I don't know how, but if you touch her I'll kill you. I swear it. I may be your prisoner now, but I'll find a way..."

Al grinned. He _really _liked this kid...

"Easy, easy, no one wants to hurt her- or you, for that matter."

"I don't believe you."

"I know, I know..." Al soothed. "Look, I'm trying to save your lives, believe it or not."

"I choose not." Hyde muttered, slumping down into the chair again.

"Okay, how do you feel about her? Honestly now."

"She's... she's more than just hot. She's beautiful... she's soft, and warm, and funny, and completely out of my league. Which is why I don't get how Kelso got to her for so long. Maybe she has self-esteem issues, because Kelso is a tool who treated her like crap."

"Maybe she's not out of your league."

"Oh, she is. Though, I don't get it. I finally realize how much I want her, and she turns me down. Didn't feel _anything_, when I felt more than I'd ever felt in my whole _life_? What the fuck, man?"

"Maybe she was scared. Maybe it was cold feet-"

"What are you, Dr. Ruth now?" Hyde spat. "She realized she was slumming." he said bitterly.

Al sighed, rubbing his hands over his face. "Okay, okay. Let's change the line of questioning to something less morose. What is something special you shared?"

"The Zen man. The Zen..."

"Oh, crap, we've lost him to the high..." Al muttered.

Dr. Beeks, however, shook her head. "I think that's some private joke between the two of them." she whispered to Al.

"Okay, let's try a few more minutes..."


	6. Chapter 6

After talking to Al, Sam started forming a strategy. He was a little fuzzy, because he had been unaware the brownies Hyde's friends had brought down to the basement were "magical", but, he was trying to get a handle on it.

"Jackie... you're beautiful, you know that?" Sam said, eyeing her.

Jackie nodded innocently. "Yes, I know." she said with a shrug.

"No, I mean really beautiful..."

Al rolled his eyes. "Sammy, you're loosing her... come on." Al prodded, frustrated.

Sam cleared his throat and Jackie frowned at him. "You're acting weird." she declared. "Not like you."

"Well, maybe I could act more like me if I knew who that [i]was[/i]." Sam blurted.

Jackie's eyebrow went up, and Sam continued, starting to tap into more than just what Al had told him, but the emotions of the boy he was inhabiting.

"Sam, tell her that sometimes you think she knows you better than anyone else, and sometimes you think she doesn't know you at all."

Sam shot Al an aggravated look.

"It's what the boy [i]said[/i], Sam! He said she wasn't the spoiled princess she thought she was."

Sam took a deep breath, sighing.

"What are you looking at?" Jackie asked him.

"Nevermind that..." Sam sighed, taking her hands. "Jackie, sometimes I think you know me better than anyone else, and sometimes I think you don't know me at all." He looked confused by the words that had come out of his mouth, and then something seemed to click in his brain. "Because you thought I would reject you, that's why you said you didn't feel anything that night, isn't it?"

Jackie trembled. "Steven... don't do this to me..."

"Jackie... I wouldn't have." Sam said softly, putting a gentle hand to the side of her head.

Jackie blinked back hot tears, laying her cheek into his palm. "Oh, Steven..."

"The kid says that the second he heard some guy named Chip trash-mouthin' her he knew by the fact he wanted to kill him that she was his. It was love. Pfft, teenagers..." Al smirked.

"The second Chip was saying... that stuff about you, I realized how I felt about you... that you were mine. I'm only sorry it took this long for me to admit it. I'm an idiot for that, and I'm sorry..." he said, looking at her sincerely.

Jackie's eyes were huge. "Oh, Steven, that's the most romantic thing I've ever seen, heard or read about!" she gushed. "And, I don't care if it [i]is[/i] the fact that you had four brownies talking! I'm not letting you out of it!" she squealed, throwing her arms around his neck.

Sam smiled, pulling her into a passionate kiss, as their friends stood, open mouthed, jaws to the floor [i]shocked[/i].

"Sam! You did it!" Al said excitedly, looking at the new stats on Ziggy. "Ziggy says that Jackie and Steven Hyde are still married today, and have three kids, Beau, Stephanie and Jackson. She has her own talk show called "Jackie", and he runs half of his long lost father's record label. They're living happily in Hackensack- [i]Hackensack[/i]? Who's happy in [i]Hackensack[/i]? I'm [i]from [/i]there..." Al muttered.

But, Sam didn't hear a word, because he was already leaping out of Hyde and into his next "client" to help. As always, he looked around, disoriented as the bright blue electrical lights flashed around him, and finally saw that he was wearing a skintight dress, stillettoes, and felt [i]very[/i] awkward.

People and flashing lights were all around him, and a flitty-looking man in a pink boa spoke to him in a woman's smoker's purr. "Ten minutes, Miss Brinkley."

"Oh, boy..."

-END-


End file.
